Fossils on Vancouver Island

Look I have never pretended to have any knowledge of fossils. I just thought I would write a bit about them because our local museum recently took delivery of the elasmosaur bones which were found in the middle of Courtenay and had been sent to Alberta for identification and assembly. The dog with the attitude got ahead of me on that one and I am left with the bits and pieces! Where do I go from here?

Well I might as well start at the beginning. The word fossil comes from a Latin word "fossilis" which means "something dug out of the ground". A fossil then is  the remains, trace or impression of an ancient animal or plant naturally preserved in sedimentary rock. Areas like Vancouver Island where mountains have been created by a folding action are often good places to find fossils since the sedimentary rock from different geological periods has been  pushed up and exposed.

It is not often that a paleontologist (a scientist who studies fossils) finds a large well preserved specimen like the elasmosaur that Kiwi described. Smaller fossils though are quite common. In sedimentary rock small fossils of bones, teeth, shell and plants can often be found by the collector who will take the time to look carefully.  Some of the fossilized remains that can be found look like those of present day creatures.  The ancestors of the clams, snails and crabs of today lived back in Cretaceous and Cenozoic times (140 to 25 million years ago.)  Other fossils which can be found have no modern day equivalent and are of species that have since become extinct.

On my more geology page I explained that Vancouver Island is a terrane that was transported to its present location from  its birth place somewhere south of the equator.  An examination of fossils was one of the things that led scientists to adopt this theory about the formation of Vancouver Island.   In any area where there is rock built up during a particular period you can expect to find fossils of the animals and plants that lived in the location at that time. The fossils on Vancouver Island are similar to those which have been found  in lands on the far side of the Pacific Ocean or around the Indian Ocean.  They differ markedly from those found in the rest of Canada.  It was this discovery that led scientists to conduct tests from which gave rise to the present theories that have been advanced to explain the geological formation of this island.


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Fossils Found on Vancouver Island

AMMONITES. BELEMNITES. BIVALVES.
BRACHIOPODS. CORAL. CRINOIDS.
CRUSTACEANS. ECHINOIDS. GASTROPODS.


Our Showy Fossils

You have no doubt noticed that I have not mentioned our elasmosaur. He or she is a reptile. The elasmosaur has been described as a turtle without a shell. The fossilized remains of another ancient sea turtle have been found in the Courtenay area of Vancouver Island. The desmatochelys is also on display at the Courtenay Museum. Paleontologists working with the museum are currently involved in a dig at a site where the fossilized bones of a Mosasaur have been located. This is a crocodile like reptile and the specimine found is about 10 meters long.


What We Haven't Found

To the great disappointment of our local youngsters there have been no dinosaurs located here on Vancouver Island. Dinosaurs have been found on the part of North America which we believe was here all along. You will recall though that the mountainous areas of British Columbia and Vancouver Island were originally terranes which were formed elsewhere. That may explain why we do not have dinosaurs and our neighbours do. We do have a few mammalian teeth but nothing very interesting by way of fossilized mammals or fish. Still you can't have everything and it seems to me we have more than our share of interesting fossils.

UP DATE:  I have just read Ludvigson's new book (see note below) and they have found a fossilized tooth in the Trent Formation that they think is that of a dinosaur.
 


Where to Go to See the Real Thing

Many of the fossils which have been gathered on Vancouver Island are in private collections.  There are, however, public displays at the following public museums: Tourist Information Offices in each of these locations will provide you with street addresses and hours of operation for these museums.  Check under the tourism information section for the  city  in question.

For the more adventurous, the book West Coast Fossils, by Rolf Ludvigsen and Graham Beard, contains a field guide describing the location of good fossil digging sites on the island.  A new revised version has recently been published and can be ordered from:

Harbour Publishing
P.O.Box 219
Madiera Park B.C.
V0N 2H0

Related Links

The Dinosaur Museum in Alberta
Fossil Freak's Home Page Check her link page!
More about the Mosasaur



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